perplexity_searchLABSCO SUMMARY
One search tool and three answer tools — and picking the wrong answer tool is the usual mistake.
An agent handed all four will reach for research when ask would have done, because the name sounds more thorough. It costs minutes. The useful habit is to treat ask as the default and reserve research for questions where you would genuinely have opened ten tabs. Perplexity being the vendor also means the search index behind it is the one their product is built on, not a resold API.
What it is
Perplexity's own endpoint: ranked web search from their Search API, plus three answer tools backed by their Agent API.
What you get
- perplexity_search — ranked web search
- perplexity_ask — quick question and answer
- perplexity_research — deep research
- perplexity_reason — complex reasoning
- Ask, research and reason run on the Agent API's fast, high and medium presets
Requirements
- No key if you sign in: Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code and claude.ai open a browser where you sign in with your Perplexity account.
- Signing in needs you to be an admin of a Perplexity API organization that can pay for usage; calls are billed to it.
- Clients that can't sign in send an API key from the console as a bearer token.
- Clients that only run local servers use the published package instead, with your key in
PERPLEXITY_API_KEY.
Setup effort
Paste a URL, then authorize — add the endpoint to your client, then approve the OAuth consent screen
USE CASES
01
A quick factual question
The default choice; the others cost time.
02
Finding sources
Ranked web search rather than a synthesised answer.
03
A question worth ten tabs
Deep research, when the wait is justified.
04
A problem, not a lookup
Reasoning over the retrieved material.
4 tools
Listed in project docs. Your client may show a different list.
perplexity_askperplexity_researchperplexity_reasonBEFORE YOU INSTALL
What to know first
Tools you get
4 tools named in the project's documentation.
Requires
an MCP client that can reach a remote endpoint; to sign in: admin of a Perplexity API organization that can pay for usage; if your client can't sign in: an API key from the Perplexity console
Where it runs
Of the 10 documented setups, 7 run the server on your machine and 3 connect to a hosted endpoint.
INSTALLATION
Connect your client
Add the endpoint to your client, then approve the OAuth consent screen.
Server setup
ENDPOINT URL
https://api.perplexity.ai/mcpRequirements
- Sign in with Perplexity (OAuth), in clients that support it
- Bearer API key from the Perplexity console, for clients that cannot sign in
MCP Clients
Claude Code — Remote
CLAUDE CODE — REMOTE · TERMINAL
claude mcp add --transport http perplexity https://api.perplexity.ai/mcpRun /mcp inside Claude Code and follow the sign-in prompt for perplexity. To use an API key instead, add --header "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" to the command.
Cursor — Remote
Add the server to ~/.cursor/mcp.json, then open Cursor Settings > Tools & MCP and click Connect next to perplexity to sign in:
CURSOR — REMOTE · JSON
{
"mcpServers": {
"perplexity": {
"url": "https://api.perplexity.ai/mcp"
}
}
}VS Code — Remote
Add the server to .vscode/mcp.json. VS Code opens a browser to sign in the first time the server starts:
VS CODE — REMOTE · JSON
{
"servers": {
"perplexity": {
"type": "http",
"url": "https://api.perplexity.ai/mcp"
}
}
}Claude Code — Local
CLAUDE CODE — LOCAL · TERMINAL
claude mcp add perplexity --env PERPLEXITY_API_KEY="your_key_here" -- npx -y @perplexity-ai/mcp-serverCodex
CODEX · TERMINAL
codex mcp add perplexity --env PERPLEXITY_API_KEY="your_key_here" -- npx -y @perplexity-ai/mcp-serverCursor — Local
Add this to ~/.cursor/mcp.json:
CURSOR — LOCAL · JSON
{
"mcpServers": {
"perplexity": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"@perplexity-ai/mcp-server"
],
"env": {
"PERPLEXITY_API_KEY": "your_key_here"
}
}
}
}Claude Desktop
Add this to your claude_desktop_config.json:
CLAUDE DESKTOP · JSON
{
"mcpServers": {
"perplexity": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"@perplexity-ai/mcp-server"
],
"env": {
"PERPLEXITY_API_KEY": "your_key_here"
}
}
}
}Kiro
Add this to .kiro/settings/mcp.json:
KIRO · JSON
{
"mcpServers": {
"perplexity": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"@perplexity-ai/mcp-server"
],
"env": {
"PERPLEXITY_API_KEY": "your_key_here"
}
}
}
}Windsurf
Add this to ~/.codeium/windsurf/mcp_config.json:
WINDSURF · JSON
{
"mcpServers": {
"perplexity": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"@perplexity-ai/mcp-server"
],
"env": {
"PERPLEXITY_API_KEY": "your_key_here"
}
}
}
}VS Code — Local
Add this to .vscode/mcp.json:
VS CODE — LOCAL · JSON
{
"servers": {
"perplexity": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"@perplexity-ai/mcp-server"
],
"env": {
"PERPLEXITY_API_KEY": "your_key_here"
}
}
}
}
